Catholic’s Fortnight for Freedom continues through Wednesday

Catholics continued the “Fortnight for Freedom” observance as parishioners gathered Thursday evening in the sanctuary of St. Therese of Lisieux for a holy hour of prayer and exposition of the Holy Eucharist.

Fortnight for Freedom began June 21 and continues to July 4. The 14-day period is meant to help every Catholic to become better informed about religious freedom and the Catholic faith.

Bishop Richard F. Stika, Diocese of Knoxville, in a press release, described the fortnight as a time to consider what it means to be Catholic and to stand up against attacks on the freedom to exercise religious faith.

Fortnight for Freedom was born in response to a Department of Health and Human Services mandate forcing virtually all employers to pay for sterilization and contraceptives, including abortion-inducing drugs to employees. The administration of President Barack Obama published a final ruling on Feb. 15 mandating contraception and sterilization coverage in almost all private health plans nationwide, with an “extremely” narrow exemption for some religious employers.

In a March 21 notice of proposed rulemaking, the administration left the mandate unchanged while proposing an accommodation under which the mandate might be applied in various ways to the employees of religious organizations that are not exempt.

According to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, the mandate forces coverage of sterilization and abortion-inducing drugs and devices as well as contraception. It also forces employers to sponsor and subsidize coverage of sterilization. Catholic charities, schools, universities or hospitals — which the bishops say are vital to the work of the church — are not exempt.

The administration does not view them as religious employers and deserving of conscience protection because they do not serve primarily persons who share the same religious beliefs.

The United States Supreme Court ruled Thursday morning in a 5-4 decision upholding almost all of the law, including the requirement that virtually all Americans have health insurance or pay a penalty.

According to the Associated Press, the court said the penalty is essentially a tax, and that’s why the government has the power to impose it. The ruling somewhat limits the plan to expand the Medicaid insurance program for the poor, a joint effort of the federal government and states. The justices stated the federal government could not withhold a state’s entire Medicaid allotment if it does not participate in the expansion.

The AP reported that unless Congress changes the law, starting in 2014 almost everyone would be required to be insured or pay the penalty. Subsidies would help people who can’t afford coverage.

Also, most employers, including religious employers, would face fines if they do not offer coverage for their workers. Newly created insurance markets are designed to make it easier for individuals and small businesses to buy affordable coverage.

Additionally, insurers would be prohibited from denying coverage to people with medical problems or charging those people more. Women could not be charged more than men. During the transition to 2014, a special program for people with pre-existing health problems would help those people get coverage.

The law is expected to bring coverage to about 30 million of the estimated 50 million uninsured people in the U.S. Overall, more than 9 in 10 of the eligible population — citizens and legal residents — will be covered, according to The AP.

Bishop Stika stated in the press release that the Supreme Court decision does not address the fundamental flaws in the Patient Protection and Af­fordable Care Act.

“Legislation will be necessary to fix serious problems in the law in order to protect the freedom of conscience for all Americans, prevent the use of taxpayers’ money to fund abortions and allow all people living in the United States to have access to health care,” he wrote. “The Catholic bishops of the United States have been and continue to be consistent advocates for comprehen­sive health care reform to ensure access to life-affirming health care for all, especially the poorest and the most vulnerable.

“The bishops ultimately opposed the ACA’s final form for reasons that included the following: failure to re­spect and provide for essential conscience protection; the use of federal funding for abortions and mandatory coverage of abortion-inducing drugs, sterilization and birth control; and a failure to care for all people from conception to natural death.

“The Catholic Church has not joined in efforts to repeal the law in its entirety, and we do not do so today. In­stead, I, together with the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, continue to urge Congress to pass, and the Administration to sign, legislation to fix those flaws.”